Combination card storage receptacles and display boards



Dec; 10, 1957 E. J. M KENNA 2,815,854

COMBINATION CARD STORAGE RECEPTACLES AND DISPLAY BOARDS Filed May 11, 1953 INVENTOR. EDWARD J. Mc KENNA' display board without wasting space.

United States Patentfiiice Patented Dec. ,1 0,, 1957 COMBINATION CARD STORAGE ,RECEPTACLES AND DISPLAY BOARDS Edward J. McKenna,St. Louis, Mo.

Application May 11, 1953, Serial No. 354,002

2 Claims. (Cl. 20644) available for sale, stock-taking and re-filling. The invention may also be used to advantage for the display and sale of various types of carded merchandise, such as picture hangers, hairpins and other notions.

The invention utilizes a simple form of display board support which extends forward from and is preferably molded as part of the transparent box. On the display board support and forward of its juncture with the box is a point of support for the display board; and forward and upward from this point of support is a detent point. To open the display box the display board may be leaned forward against this detent; it may be leaned backward against the front and rear edges of the box to close the receptacle; and it may be entirely removed for cleaning and re-stocking the merchandise.

Considering again the objectives of the invention, a further object is to utilize such board support means as a spacer for separating each box in the counter display from the box forwardly adjacent it.

A still further object is to provide a storage receptacle having a slanting top and an open bottom, with bottom Cards dropped into the receptacle are thus caused to rest with their lower edges forward and their upper edges backward, permitting them to be covered by a slanting Further, the receptacle will be kept substantially dust free because it is bottomless.

An additional objective is to provide a display and storage receptacle whose body portion is transparent so that the quantity of cards stored beyond the sloping display board may be readily ascertained by the clerk at the rear of the display.

Still another objective is to provide a display receptacle whose body portion is adapted to be formed of plastic by injection molding, and to provide for flow of the plastic during molding from bottom ribs to the rear and front walls of the receptacle and to vertical front spacer ribs in lateral alignment with the bottom ribs. The upper surfaces of such front spacer ribs may also serve to support the lower edge of the display board and the greeting cards displayed thereon without accumulating more than a minimum of dust.

If greater simplicity in construction is desired, the

molded display board may be dispensed with; and a further object is to permit a bent sheet metal or extruded plastic trough to be substituted for and serve the purposes of such a molded support. A trough of this type may be utilized with an elongated form of receptacle, or rack,

wherein several different varieties of cards may be stored side-by side and upon which individual display boards may be slantingly rested in side by side alignment.

Referring now to the drawings (one page): Figure '1 is a perspective view of a combined card storage receptacle and display board embodying the pres- "thedisplay board and the relative positions of adjacent similar receptacles being. shown in phantom lines.

-Figure 3 is a perspective view of a modified formof the invention, the open position of the display board being shown in phantomlines. Considering the drawings in detail and the parts thereof by part numbers, the

present invention is illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 as consisting of two separate parts, a receptacle 10, and a flat displayqboard" 11 normally supported on the receptacle l0 inan inclined plane designated by the line a,a of Figure 2. The receptacle 10 has a box-like body portion 12 which preferably has an open bottom end 13,

a front wall 14 and a rear wall 15 which are substantially vertical, and substantially vertically side walls 16 and 16. The said walls terminate in an open upper end 17; the rear edge 18 thereof (being the top of the rear wall 15) is substantially higher than the top edge to the front wall 14 which constitutes the front edge 19; and both the rear edge 18 and the front edge19 lie in the inclinedplane a-a. The side walls 16 and 16 extend preferably as high as the rear edge 18, and therefore above the inclined plane aa.

The flat display board 11 may likewise be fabricated of plastic, but may be transparent, colored, translucent or opaque. Its side edges 20 and 20 lie within an d closely adjacent the side walls 16 and 16 when the display board is in closed position on the inclinedplane aa. The rear edge 21 of the display board 11 extends rearwardly at least as far as the rear edge 18 of the box-like body portion 12. The display board 11 is supported on the upper slot ends 22 of slots 22 in its lower edge 24, the manner of support being hereinafter described.

Extending forward from the front wall 14 of the receptacle 16 are plurality of display board support members in the form of rib-like spacers 23 vwhich extend vertically upward from the bottom of the receptacle 10 and whose forward edges 25 are designed to abut against the rear wall of a similar receptacle, as shown in Figure 2. An additional function of the rib-like spacers 23 is to stabilize the receptacle 10 against forward tilting, as is obvious.

, However, the principal function of the rib-like spacers 23 is to support the display board 11 in the vicinity of its lower edge 24. In the embodiment illustratedinEigures 1 and 2, this purpose is accomplished in a simple manner by providing the rib-like spacers 23 with concavely curved upper edges 26, which edges extend from the front wall of the receptacle at a point below the horizontal front edge 19, forward and upward to a detent point designated 27 near the forward edge 25 of each spacer 23, the top portion thereof between the detent point 27 and the forward edge 25 being rounded off. The slot ends 22 of the display board slots 22 rest against and are supported by the upper edges 26 of the rib-like spacers 23 at points in the inclined plane a-a; these points are designated as points of support 28. It is to be noted from Figure 1 that the greeting card designated b exhibited on display board 11 also rests on the rib-like spacers 23. Because of the narrow width of these spacers 23, there is little space for the accumulation .ofany dust;

with similar receptacles designated 10 and 10.

and the slope of the display board 11 tends to cause any particles of dust which may fall thereon or on the card b to slide down forward and fall between the rib- .like spacers 23 to the counter upon which the receptacle 10 is supported.

Referring to Figure 2, the utility of the detent points 27 is illustrated. When it is desired to open the transparent receptacle 10 for counting or replenishing the greeting cards in stock therein, designated c, or for such other purpose as may be desired, the flat display board 11 may be moved into the open or forward-leaning position illustrated in phantom lines in Figure 2. The detent points 27, being forward of and upward from the points of support 28, serve as leaning points for the display board 11. In the embodiment illustrated the depth of the slots 22' in the lower edge 24 of the display board 11 is such as to permit the said lower edge 24 to abut against the front wall 14 of the receptacle 10 when the'board 11 is leaning against the detent points 27 with the upper slot ends 22 resting on the points of support 28. The smooth concave curvature of the upper edges 26 of the rib-like spacers 23 makes the depth of the slots 22' not a critical factor; if shorter slots were employed it is apparent that their upper ends 22 could ride somewhat backward toward the front wall 14 until a stable point of support was reached wherein the lower edge 24 of the display board 11 would contact the front wall 14. The use of slots 22' of proper length is found to minimize the necessary height of the detent points 27 over the points of support 28.

Referring again to Figure 2, it is desirable that the receptacle 10 be of no greater height than to accommodate easily the greeting cards in stock 0. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2, the front edge 19 of the receptacle 10 is at a lesser height from the open bottom end 13 than the height of the said greeting cards c in stock. To accommodate these greeting cards within the receptacle they must slant backwards, although at a somewhat lesser angle than the inclined plane aa.

To achieve this backward slant the open bottom end 13 is provided with a plurality of sloping card support ribs 29 which slant upward from a point 30 in the front wall 14 near the open bottom end 13 to a higher point 7 30 in the front wall, so that with reasonably smooth upper surfaces on the card support ribs 29, the cards 0 may be merely dropped into the receptacle 10 and they will automatically assume the position shown in Figure 2.

It is advantageous that these card support ribs 29 be arranged in lateral alignment with the rib-like spacers 23. The first reason for such alignment is that, on molding of the receptacle and spacers combined, molten plastic may be introduced through the card support ribs 29 to the front wall 14 and to the spacers 23, with adequate flow being thus provided. If such a molding process is utilized, the receptacle walls 14, 15, 16, 16 may taper slightly outward and upward to facilitate removal from the mold. A second reason for such alignment is to afford maximum strength and rigidity to the structure.

The invention here shown is well adapted for use on a stepped sham display counter such as is generally designated d in Figure 2, in fore-and-aft aligned displays Such an arrangement gives visibility to customers at the front of the display; and the transparency of the receptacles 10, 10" and 10" gives the clerk serving the display from the rear knowledge when to replenish stock on hand in each.

An alternate embodiment is shown in Figure 3, wherein a receptacle 10' is provided with a front wall 14 having no spacer ribs or other projections on its front surface.

-The receptacle 10' is otherwise similar to the receptacle 4 10 heretofore described. A flat display board 11' is utilized, it being similar to the display board 11 except that its lower edge 24 is not slotted.

Mounted removably onto the front edge 19 of the receptacle 10' is the inverted-channel support flange 32 of a sheet-metal or extruded plastic trough 33. The bottom 34 of the trough33 is pierced or otherwise penetrated by a plurality of dust apertures 35. The trough 33 has a lower rear edge 36 adjacent the front wall 14' of the receptacle 10, and a lower front edge 37 whose inner corner constitutes a front support line designated e-e, lying in the inclined plane made by the display board 11' when at rest on the receptacle front edge 19 and rear edge 18. It is apparent that if the lower front edge 37 did not coincide with this inclined plane, the display board 11 would not, when resting within the edge 37, completely close the top of the receptacle 10'.

Rising from the lower front edge 37 is a front flange 38, whose upper margin 39 may be rounded over. The inward-facing edge of the upper margin 39 is a detent edge 40, against which the display board 11 may be leaned forward and rested, as shown in phantom lines in Figure 3. In this position the lower margin 24' of the display board 11' will nest within and be supported by the trough lower rear edge 36 adjacent the receptacle front wall 14'. Any dust which has accumulated on the display board 11 or on any card displayed thereon will be dislodged when the display board 11 is moved from the normal display position shown in solid lines to the forward-leaning position shown in phantom lines, and will be permitted to drop through the dust apertures 35.

The invention, and particularly the alternate cmbodiment shownin Figure 3, is adapted for use in card-display racks wide enough to display a number of cards side by side, using elongated troughs extending the full width of the racks, and separate display boards for each card to be displayed, aligned side by side in such troughs. Similarly, other variations in form, size, proportion and details may be utilized without departing from the present invention as defined by the claims which follow.

What I claim is:

1. A display receptacle comprising a box-like body portion having an open upper end including rectilinear front and rear upper edges defining an inclined plane sloping downward from rear to front, and a display board support member including a board support rib having an upper surface extending below said front upper edge forward to intersect such inclined plane, the board support rib having an upward extension forward of such intersection and including on the surface of said extension an aft-presented leaning-support point, together with a display board including a slot wider than the rib and having a slot end resting upon the upper surface of the rib, whereby two positions for said board are established, an aft-leaning position in which the slot end rests on the rib upper surface at such intersection and the aft face of the board lies in said inclined plane against the upper end of the receptacle, and a forward-leaning position wherein the slot end rests on the rib support surface aft of such intersection, the lower edge of the board rests against the forward side of the box-like body portion and the forward face of the board rests against the aftpresented leaning-support point of the board support member.

2. A receptacle for displaying and storing cards without any substantial accumulation of dust, comprising the receptacle defined in claim 1, together with a card support rib extending across its lower end from front to rear, the rib having an upper surface sloping upward from front to rear whereby cards are supported within the receptacle in diagonal position with their lower edges upon the upper surface of the rib above the lower end References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Nelson Dec. 31, 1872 Hebard May 8, 1894 Bowman Dec. 8, 1908 6 Susseles July 29, 1924 Weldon May 20, 1930 Owitz Aug. 29, 1933 Haven Mar. 20, 1934 Erickson Dec. 30, 1941 Backstrom Jan. 6, 1942 Phillips Nov. 21, 1950 Martin Aug. 10, 1954 

